Bishop's Writings

From January 17 to January 27, 2015, Episcopal and interfaith leaders are traveling in the Holy Land as pilgrims and witnesses, and to provide various forms of support for the Christian communities of the Holy Land, particularly the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem and its institutions. We ask your prayers for safe travels and a transformative experience on this pilgrimage, which fulfills General Convention 2012 Resolution B-019. We also pray that this experience will help bring a spirit of pilgrimage and witness to the Diocese of Rochester.

Human beings tend to have the proclivity to hang out with those who are similar to themselves. Homogeneity is a trend that is easily accessed and often available in most human interactions. Difference, on the other hand, is less easily accessed and often less readily available in most human interactions.

As we take in the beauty of this season with its various nuances of color, I am conscious that tranquility is juxtaposed by the harsh overtones of violence/violation in our world - be it the destruction caused by homicides in our city, ISIS, Ebola, domestic violence or the systemic history of violence as it relates to Native Americans in this country.

As we come to the end of our meeting, I have been struck by several things during this sojourn as/to the House of Bishops in Taiwan. The typhoon downgraded to a tropical storm was a disruption for many; there was some loss of life in the Philippines and Taiwan. Our prayers surround those affected due to the vulnerability of their residential spaces.